Controlled/“living” radical polymerization of styrene catalyzed by FeCl2/succinic acid

Abstract

A new ligand, succinic acid, was successfully used for atom transfer radical polymerization. The reaction was carried out at 40 to 100°C in bulk with α-bromoethyl benzene as the initiator and FeCl2/(succinic acid) as the catalyst system. The molecular weight of the resulting polymer increases with increasing monomer conversion, however, it is somewhat lower than the theoretical value. The polydispersity index is relatively low (Mw/Mn = 1.30) even though there may be a possible chain transfer reaction during the polymerization. The enthalpy of the equilibrium between active species and dormant ones was calculated to be 2.15 kcal/mol.